888-900-0205Retail Store Workers Compensation Insurance
Whether you sell books, clothing, home appliances, sports equipment, or any other products, you need retail store workers comp insurance for your business. This is the case whether you employ a few people or dozens. Before you obtain a quote for this kind of insurance, you should get to know some of the best reasons to get a workers comp policy for your retail store.
Lost Wages And Medical Care
If any member of your staff getshurt or becomes sick on the job, you are responsible for paying any related medical bills. When you have retail store workers comp insurance, the money no longer has to come out of your pocket because this policy will cover these expenses. It is also there tomake up for any lost wages the staff member cannot earn as he or she recovers from the work-related injury. This is one good reason to make sure retail store workers comp coverage is added to your business insurance, considering that hospital bills alone can bankrupt many businesses.
Business Travel Protection
Any time your employees have to travel for this job, you need business travel protection as part of your retail store workers comp insurance. When you get this type of coverage, your staff will be covered even if they are not at your retail store. As long as they are on the clock working for you, any injuries they suffer should be covered by insurance.
Employer’s Liability
Though workers comp is known for paying forlmedical treatment and any lost wages, it also has another purpose, and that is to cover lawsuits that arise when an employee is hurt. This segment of workers comp is referred to as employer’s liability. It covers four main types of lawsuits. One type is called consequential bodily injury, in which the injured staff member’s relativesuffers an injury or illness because of the work-related injury. That family member can sue you to cover his or her medical bills, at which point this coverage will protect you. Loss of consortium is another possible lawsuit, and it occurs when the injured employee cannot engage in marital relations with his or her spouse anymore because of the injury.
Another type of legal consequence is a dual-capacity lawsuit. This type of case names you astheemployer as well as the person who supplied the product that hurt the staff member.A third party suit is another type of lawsuit. It means that if your injured staff memberbrings a lawsuit against a third party for the injury, thatthird party is able to bring a lawsuit against you, as well.
Employer’s Liability In Monopolistic States
Some states including Wyoming, North Dakota, Ohio, and Washington do not allow employer’s liability to be part of workers compensation insurance. If your business is in one of these states, you are required to buy stop-gap insurance as part of your liability policy. This is the only way to get the same protection that employer’s liability coverage provides businesses when it comes to legal costs.
Legal Expenses
There are lots of legal fees associated with work injuries when the employee decides to sue. Firstly, you will be responsible for hiring a lawyer. You will also need to cover the costs of judgments against you in court, or settlements that occur out of court. Either way, your retail store workers comp insurance can pay for your legal bills.
Third-Party Suits
If your staff member sued anyone aside from your business due to the injury, it’s possible that you will be facing a third-party suit. One example is if your employee sued a ladder manufacturer after he or she fell off it at work, the ladder manufacturer might bring a lawsuit against you if there is any reason to believe the ground was not steady or the ladder was not in good condition. Not every employer faces a third-party suit, but it’s wise to have retail store workers comp insurance in case you ever do.